Rain stops in Auckland

Rain has finally stopped falling in Auckland this morning but the surface is sure to be slippery for tonight's Tri-Nations rugby league clash between Australia and New Zealand.

Heavy skies over Auckland mean the rain may not stay away for long though, with showers forecast for tonight's match. Neither side has any injury concerns heading into the Ericsson Stadium encounter, with Kangaroos halfback Andrew Johns showing no signs of the knee soreness which limited his training earlier in the week when he ran strongly with the squad yesterday.

Both outfits are under differing sorts of pressure heading into the match, with the Aussies looking to keep their hopes of making the Tri-Nations final alive with a victory. The Kiwis meanwhile have history against them, and are looking to become the first national side since France in 1978 to beat Australia in back-to-back games in the same year.